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Department of Chemistry

Criminalistics

NOTICE: Introduction to Criminalistics Lecture and Lab (CHE 2710 and 2711) will be offered in both Fall and Spring of the 2014-2015 academic year. Beginning in the 2015-2016 academic year, the course will be offered only in Spring semesters.

About the Criminalistics Program

Definition

Criminalistics is a branch of Forensic Science that applies science to law through the recognition, documentation, collection, preservation, and analysis of physical evidence. A criminalist is a specialist who uses scientific principles to analyze, compare and/or identify firearms, fingerprints, hairs, fibers, drugs, blood, and other physical evidence. A criminalist may also be trained to conduct crime scene investigation. Additionally, experienced, credentialed criminalists regularly provide expert court testimony.

Admission

Upon admission to Metropolitan State University of Denver, any student who wishes to major in Chemistry with a concentration in Criminalistics, should contact the Program Director (Dr. April Hill, ahill45@msudenver.edu) as soon as possible to complete the declaration of major form and discuss internship requirements (see “Special Requirements” section below).

Career Opportunities

Opportunities are available with Federal Agencies such as:

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF)

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

U.S. Customs

Armed Services Laboratories

Many of our graduates have found employment with state and local forensic laboratories. Recent graduates have secured jobs at the North Dakota State Crime Laboratory (Forensic Scientist in Drug Chemistry), the Salt Lake City Police Department (Crime Scene Investigator), the Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory (Materials Analyst), the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office (Crime Scene Investigator), and the Boulder County Coroner’s Office (Deputy Coroner). Graduates have also been hired in non-forensic chemistry laboratories such as Environmental Protection Agency, Coca-Cola Bottling Co., and Hazen Research. Still others choose to pursue graduate degrees such as a Master’s in Forensic Science or Master’s/PhD degrees in Chemistry. In addition to careers directly related to criminalistics, chemistry majors find employment opportunities in such diverse fields such as: medicine, environmental science, pharmacology, pharmaceutics, materials science, physical therapy, dentistry, medical technology engineering, and law.

Criminalistics Program Goals

The Program’s primary goal is to prepare majors for careers and/or postgraduate studies in Forensic Sciences and for a lifetime of learning in the field. The Criminalistics Program endeavors to provide students the opportunity to develop critical thinking skills, criminalistics-specific knowledge, and a crucial understanding of chemical principals.

Transfers

Transfer students are welcomed. If, upon evaluation, chemistry courses taken at an accredited institution of higher education are judged to be comparable to the chemistry program’s course offerings, transfer credit will be awarded.

Special Requirements

Nearly all criminalistics employment is in government agencies that have special requirements including background checks and polygraph examination. Background checks will include criminal record, credit history, and interviews with people familiar with the applicant. Recent illicit drug use (five years), felony convictions, commission of crimes for which you have not been charged, drunk driving convictions, and co-habitation with drug users and/or felons will disqualify an applicant from most positions.The same qualifications apply to the required internships.

Notes

The Criminalistics Concentration is split into two tracks, A and B. Both Tracks impart a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemistry with a Concentration in Criminalistics. Track A requires one semester of Physical Chemistry and two internships in Criminalistics. Track B requires one internship and a full year of Physical Chemistry (along with the required Calculus courses), which allows the student to earn the certification of the American Chemical Society (ACS). Please see a Department Advisor to discuss the ACS certificate requirements. The Senior Experience course for this concentration is CHE 4710. A grade of “C” or better is required for each course in this program to count toward the bachelor’s degree. The requirement of a minor is waived for students in the Concentration Program, but all students must meet the University’s General Studies requirements in order to graduate.

Chemistry BS with Criminalistics Concentration

Required Chemistry Core Courses

Credit Hours

CHE 1800

General Chemistry I

4

CHE 1810

General Chemistry II

4

CHE 1850

General Chemistry Lab

2

CHE 3000

Analytical Chemistry

3

CHE 3010

Analytical Chemistry Lab

2

CHE 3100

Organic Chemistry I

4

CHE 3110

Organic Chemistry II

3

CHE 3120

Organic Chemistry I Lab

2

CHE 3130

Organic Chemistry II Lab

2

Subtotal

26

Required Additional Chemistry Courses

CHE 4100

Instrumental Analysis

3

CHE 4110

Instrumental Analysis Lab

2

CHE 4310

Biochemistry I

4

CHE 4350

Biochemistry Laboratory

1

Subtotal

10

Required Criminalistics Courses

CHE 2710

Introduction to Criminalistics

3

CHE 2711

Introduction to Criminalistics Laboratory***

1

CHE 3700

Criminalistics I

4

CHE 3710

Criminalistics II

4

CHE 4710

Criminalistics Internship II

3

Subtotal

15

Required Ancillary Courses

BIO 1080

General Biology I

3

BIO 1090

General Biology I Lab

1

BIO 3050

Cell and Molecular Biology

4

BIO 3600

General Genetics -OR-

4

BIO 3610

Genetics: Principles and Analysis

4

CJC 1010

Introduction to the Criminal Justice System

3

CJC 4650

Ethics for the Criminal Justice Professional***

3

MTH 1210

Introduction to Statistics -OR-

4

MTH 3210

Probability and Statistics

4

MTH 1410

Calculus I

4

Subtotal

26

Required Physics Courses (you may complete either sequence)

PHY 2010

College Physics I

3

PHY 2030

College Physics I Lab

2

PHY 2020

College Physics II

3

PHY 2040

College Physics II Lab

2

-OR-

PHY 2311

General Physics I

3

PHY 2321

General Physics I Lab

2

PHY 2331

General Physics II

3

PHY 2341

General Physics II Lab

2

Subtotal

10

Required Physical Chemistry Options (Choose A or B)

Option A

CHE 3190

Survey of Physical Chemistry

4

CHE 3200

Survey of Physical Chemistry Lab

1

CHE 4700

Criminalistics Internship I

5

Option B

CHE 3250

Physical Chemistry I

4

CHE 3280

Physical Chemistry I Lab

2

CHE 3260

Physical Chemistry II

4

CHE 3290

Physical Chemistry II Lab

2

MTH 2410

Calculus II

4

MTH 2420

Calculus III

4

TOTAL CREDITS:

Option A

97

Option B

107

*** For catalog years prior to Fall 2015, these requirements differ slightly. See Department Advisor to discuss options.

Facilities

The Chemistry Department and Criminalistics program is housed in the new Science Building (opened January 2010) on the Auraria Campus. The new 195,000-sq.ft. facility is paired with a renovated existing 143,000-sq.ft. Science Building. Metro State’s Chemistry Department now has nine teaching labs and two research labs, including a classroom/laboratory (SI 3095) dedicated to the Criminalistics Program (with a secure room that houses the drug safe and acts as a dark room and a mock crime scene as needed) and a microscope room (SI 3097) that doubles as research space for the Program’s faculty.

The instrumentation available in the Department includes 2 ATR FT-IR spectrometers, 3 GC-MS systems, 1 GC-ion trap mass spectrometer with MS/MS and CI capability, 2 GC-FID systems, 1 flame AA spectrometer, 1 quadrupole ICPMS, 1 ion chromatograph, 1 FT-IR microspectrophotometer, 2 ion exchange chromatographs, 3 HPLC systems, 20 Vernier Logger-pro systems, 20 Spec-20 UV-Vis spectrophotometers, 1 Agilent UV-Vis spectrophotometer, 2 refrigerated table-top centrifuges, 1 refrigerated high speed centrifuge, gel boxes, a cold room, 8 stereo-microscopes, 8 polarized light microscopes, a comparison macroscope, a comparison microscope, a dark room, digital cameras, a 60 MHz multi-nuclear NMR, 1 Raman spectrometer and numerous chemical fume hoods. A warm room, autoclave, thermocyclers, and biosafety hoods are available through the Biology Department. In spring of 2008, the Biology and Chemistry Departments together acquired an Applied Biosystems 310 Genetic Analyzer. These instruments are all located on the third floor of the Science building, are in or adjacent to the teaching laboratories and are on the same floor as faculty and departmental offices. The Department also recently acquired a new Avance III HD 300MHz nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer, a Thermo Raman spectrometer, an Innovative Technology PureLab HE2 glove box, and three high-purity water systems for Departmental use. The Department is also currently installing a donated sector-field ICPMS (VG Axiom MC) with high-precision isotope measurement capability that will be developed into an instructional and research capability relevant to the Criminalistics Program.

Bevins, P.D.; Elkins, K.M. “Preparation and Evaluation of Nanoparticles for Latent Fingerprint Recovery,” poster presentation at a meeting of the Colorado Section of the ACS, Colorado Springs, CO, November 29, 2010.